(no subject)

[djm4_lj]

David Morley was killed in a 'happy slapping' attack not apparently motivated by homophobia. Somehow, that fails to make me feel any better.

The 17-year-old told the court the girl had filmed the attack on Mr Morley and he said they watched the video footage on the phone after returning to a block of flats in Lambeth.
Defence counsel Orlando Pownall QC asked him: "How did the six of you react to what was shown?"
The teenager, softly spoken and contrite, answered: "At the time we thought it was funny."

Give me the strength to keep my Liberal sense of perspective, and not clamour for the reintroduction of public flogging.

Comments

[barakta]

I feel sick after reading that. A real sense of "I /don't/ get it!". I /just/ don't understand the motive for that kind of behaviour...

[kelemvor.livejournal.com]

They thought that someone being beaten to death was funny.



HOW?



How is that remotely funny?
I suppose, if public flogging were introduced, these sociopaths could at least get their fix without killing innocent people.

[barakta]

Ahhh, but would it be the same? It wouldn't be them doing it for laughs... I'm sure they would find it too boring... They want to be involved, feel 'important' or something.

[thekumquat.livejournal.com]

I'm clinging to the thought that the comparison in the article to Clockwork Orange may be accurate - Alex grew out of violence.

[latexiron.livejournal.com]

What's this "guilty of manslaughter but cannot be named for legal reasons" bullshit?

I understand that you want to keep young people's identity hidden if they are just on trial, but if a person is guilty of a crime like that I would like to know their name so I can avoid them if I ever meet them.

[sashajwolf.livejournal.com]

If a minor commits a crime of this magnitude, society has failed as much as the minor has, and should do whatever is possible to rehabilitate the minor and give them a normal life afterwards.

[mandrake91.livejournal.com]

You're obviously a better man than I David.

As someone that knew Mr Morley personally (so maybe I do have an axe to grind) I think they should terminate the little fucking bastards with the utmost speed!!!

[lovelybug.livejournal.com]

It was horrible to read about this in the Metro on my way in this morning, and this is one of the more horrific and disturbing crimes I've read about for a while.

Nevertheless, I don't come close to wishing for capital or corporal punishment.

[ergotia.livejournal.com]

What follows may be controversial so let me make it very clear that in no way do I condone any of this and it is of course shocking in the extreme. But.....I find it easier to understand violence for kicks in teenagers than I do many other kinds of violence. Teenagers are walking hormone storms. We all have to be socialised into *not* being violent for kicks - a toddler hurting another is probably experiencing a welter of enjoyable sensations from the noises and textures of inflicting pain - and that socialisation process takes a long time and just does not "take" in some cases, especially when the life of the teenager doing the violence is *probably* one of poverty abuse and exploitation.

My reaction is my usual one - crushing despair at these events and even more crushing despair caused by the "nothing works" school of thought on what can be done to stop them - because while I hope that school of thought is wrong more and more I believe it is right.

[djm4]

We all have to be socialised into *not* being violent for kicks

I'm not sure about the 'all' in that sentence - although you may well be right - but otherwise I agree completely.